The Northern doctrine was, many years ago, that the Supreme Court was the judge.  That was their doctrine in 1800.  They denounced Madison for the report of 1799, on the Virginia resolutions; they denounced Jefferson for framing the Kentucky resolutions, because they were presumed to impugn the decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States; and they declared that that court was made, by the Constitution, the ultimate and supreme arbiter.  That was the universal judgment—­the declaration of every free State in this Union, in answer to the Virginia resolutions of 1798, or of all who did answer, even including the State of Delaware, then under Federal control.

The Supreme Court have decided that, by the Constitution, we have a right to go to the Territories and be protected there with our property.  You say, we cannot decide the compact for ourselves.  Well, can the Supreme Court decide it for us?  Mr. Lincoln says he does not care what the Supreme Court decides, he will turn us out anyhow.  He says this in his debate with the honorable member from Illinois [Mr. Douglas].  I have it before me.  He said he would vote against the decision of the Supreme Court.  Then you did not accept that arbiter.  You will not take my construction; you will not take the Supreme Court as an arbiter; you will not take the practice of the government; you will not take the treaties under Jefferson and Madison; you will not take the opinion of Madison upon the very question of prohibition in 1820.  What, then, will you take?  You will take nothing but your own judgment; that is, you will not only judge for yourselves, not only discard the court, discard our construction, discard the practice of the government, but you will drive us out, simply because you will it.  Come and do it!  You have sapped the foundations of society; you have destroyed almost all hope of peace.  In a compact where there is no common arbiter, where the parties finally decide for themselves, the sword alone at last becomes the real, if not the constitutional, arbiter.  Your party says that you will not take the decision of the Supreme Court.  You said so at Chicago; you said so in committee; every man of you in both Houses says so.  What are you going to do?  You say we shall submit to your construction.  We shall do it, if you can make us; but not otherwise, or in any other manner.  That is settled.  You may call it secession, or you may call it revolution; but there is a big fact standing before you, ready to oppose you—­that fact is, freemen with arms in their hands.  The cry of the Union will not disperse them; we have passed that point; they demand equal rights; you had better heed the demand. * * *

SAMUEL SULLIVAN COX,

OF OHIO. (BORN, 1824-DIED, 1889.)

ON SECESSION; DOUGLAS DEMOCRATIC OPINION;

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, JANUARY 14, 1861.

MR. CHAIRMAN: